cdl signature spouts

[KReinisch]

Who uses them? Pros and Cons... worried about the 45 degree angle and tubing tool.

[whity]

We started to use them last season. Love them. Don't need tubing tool to install them. They are seasonal, so we will use a different color every season. We used Leader for many years. We had an issue 2 years ago with the heads freezing and cracking. So decided to try the CDL signature spouts.

[tcross]

i don't mind them, but i don't like them as much as the leader spouts. the area you hammer to pound them in is real small, and the y shape is a PITA with most tubing tools. but, they do work well!

[KReinisch]

So you can just push tubing onto it with out tool?

[MapleMark753]

I know you're talking about regular tubing installations, but I used them last year for drop lines into buckets. Just put them on by hand, and they stayed on. Couldn't pull most of them apart at the end of season clean up. Wouldn't want to do a thousand of them by hand though...lol...

[whity]

So you can just push tubing onto it with out tool?

Yes. There's a small single barb on them. They push on and don't fall off.

[VTnewguy]

As I look for ordering taps for next year what's everyone's opinion of the signature spouts? We have used CDL's maxflow spouts with good luck but the signature are cheaper. Does the 45 degree really enhance sap flow?

[Pdiamond]

I like that they are clear and may try a few, but I have always used the 90 degree spile and will probably continue to do so for the most part.

[eagle lake sugar]

I used about 2400 of them this year for the first time and like them for the most part. They are thin walled and if they don't line up perfectly with the orientation of the hole, they will dent or deform when you tap them in. If you plan on putting them on without a tool, you should have maxflow drops, you won't push them on all the way with semi-rigid tubing. At least not when it's 10 degrees out.

[Pdiamond]

How were they when you removed them?

[Bucket Head]

This year was the first I've used them. They are harder to remove than any other spout I've used, but that might not be a bad thing. And I'll have to agree that they are a little more troublesome to work with since they are not at a 90 degree. 90's are easier to work with in my opinion.

Is everyone who is using them seeing an increase in sap volume with the signatures? Other than breakage with another manufacturer, why did you switch to them? I don't have mechanical vacuum and only a little bit of natural vacuum on 3/16th's and they seemed comparable with other spouts I've used. But, maybe this lousy season wasn't really good for any sort of comparison.

Anyone really not happy with them, and why?

Steve

[eagle lake sugar]

Mine popped right out with a removal tool no problem, even the ones my wife drove in like she was pounding in 16 penny nails.

[DrTimPerkins]

....even the ones my wife drove in like she was pounding in 16 penny nails.

Definitely NOT a good thing for sap yield. Get her a lighter hammer for your anniversary. :lol:

https://mapleresearch.org/pub/overdrive2020/

[DrTimPerkins]

They are harder to remove than any other spout I've used, but that might not be a bad thing.

Polycarbonate spouts "stick" in the tree better than nylon does, probably because they absorb less moisture from the taphole and air.

[RileySugarbush]

I really like them. The polycarbonate sticks in the tree well. The friction of the plastic on wood seems greater than nylon and the thinner walls give a bit of spring against the tap hole. They seem less likely to split the tap hole and may be a bit more forgiving on a slightly out of round hole. Not that I ever have any of those:). They hold the drop well. We push on by hand in the shop ahead of time without trouble. We still have some bags and the 45 fits through the hole in the holder and flange holds empty bags on on windy days.

I don't think the 45° angle makes any difference in flow, but overall they are the best spiles I have used.

[One tap short]

Who uses them? Pros and Cons... worried about the 45 degree angle and tubing tool.

The thinner they get the more prone to pin holes they are. That goes with any spout though. I will personally never use another again with the issues I have had.

[eagle lake sugar]

Definitely NOT a good thing for sap yield. Get her a lighter hammer for your anniversary. :lol:

https://mapleresearch.org/pub/overdrive2020/
LOL! I do almost all the tapping and I have to remind her every year just to tap them in until they seat, but when I talk to her it's like Charlie Brown's teacher. I use small florescent orange dead blow hammers, I don't lose them under the snow that way.